This message will be lengthy. Those not interested in reading it should
skip it now. I will report on my recent experience at the Abbott-Ross
Laboratories stockholders' meeting. I had a ticket to get in due to the
generous nature of a stockholder's mother (breastfeeding), whose in-laws
gave her daughter several shares as a birthday gift. Also present to speak
supporting the resolution was David Dixon from Action for Corporate
Accountability, and LeeAnn Deal from La Leche League International.
At a conference call in advance of the meeting, LLLI and I decided we would
do a bad cop-good cop. LeeAnn appeared in the usual office suit sort of
garb. I decided to go "against type", wearing a pale dress and "Grandma
Bush" pearls and sensible shoes. So far so good--except that I remembered
the sensible shoes 28 miles away from my home and still 45 miles away from
the home where I creashed the night before! So I wore my Nikes and
nylons--just think of me as appearing as an ugly old lady in tennis shoes
and you get the picture! :-) David was in the typical blue business suit
that men wear with a power (white and red striped tie).
A group of picketers complete with signs welcomed the arriving stockholders
(1400 strong). I saw a few signs. The biggest one said "vote yes for the
resolution." At one point, David and I stopped traffic right in front of
the signs when his passenger (complete with 2 year old) took a bit of extra
time to get out of the car. Police swarmed all over us. I thought we were
going to be dragged away at that point, but once we started moving again,
they left us alone.
Once in the meeting (imagine a huge room with 1100 people in it and 4 huge
video screens, two sets of cameras in the back and one in the front with a
dais and several raised seats and another mike in the center front aisle.
We finally got seats over the to side afer specifically stating that we
wished to speak. We were assured that we would be given that opportunity.
(The press had alerted A-R of the picketing and so the company had informed
ACTION taht we would have an opportunity to speak. They did NOT want a
scene. Call this classic corporate damage control.
Unfortunately (and probably deliberatley; read on) we were not allowed to
speak to the resolution until AFTER the vote, most of which had already
taken place by proxy mail-in vote. However, prior to the vote a nun from
the Sisters of Charity did introduce the resolution-that Abbott recognize
and act in concert with the WHO Code in every country where it sells
products or manufactures same. Another nun from a different order seconded
the resolution. A third nun also spoke to the resolution and supported it,
doing a very nice job, all.
The only other items on the agenda was ratifying the vote of the 13
directors, and making Arthur Anderson the accounting firm of record. Very
boring, very corporate.
That was followed by a long-winded report of how and why Abbott-Ross stock
is doing so well. I learned several things of interest: 10% of the
revenue derives form formula sales. In 1994, they had $9.2 billion in
sales. The company bought Neose, which relates to carbohydrates for
formula manufacturing.
Sales of formula for infants were slower in 1994 than in earlier years:
reasons given? a 3% drop in the birth rate, and fewer sales to WIC due to
lower bids from other companies (which represents 45% of all babies born in
the US). And the Republicans want to dump this program to the states,
effectively killing it!
Their best formula sales are for Toddlers Best (the new follow-on formula)
and NeoCare, a special formula for premies.
Also very good sales (up 30%) are for Ensure, the so-called adult formula.
RDs may be aware that this initially began as a nutritional supplement for
seniors with particular nutirtional deficiencies and is now being pushed
for younger and younger groups. The ad they proudly aired for all at the
meeting showed a young woman (in her 30s?) saying to her elderly mother,
"to your health." Her mother is shown correcting her with , "No, to OUR
health." Both are holding a glass of Ensure (it comes in vanilla,
chocolate, and strawberry flavors). Ye gods and little fishes! (I wanted
to throw up.)
The vote was hled before we had a chance to speak. It was recorded as 92%
against the resoultion, and 8% for it. That may seem devastating, except
that last year, the same reoslution gained only 4% positive votes.
More in next message.
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%% "We are all faced with a series of great %%
%% opportunities brilliantly disguised as %%
%% impossible situations" - definition of a %%
%% lactation consulting service. %%
%% Kathleen G. Auerbach, PhD, IBCLC %%
%% [log in to unmask] Homewood, Illinois USA %%
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